The Motel
by Miarka
Summary: X-Men: First Class. While staying over-night in a motel during the search to recruit mutants, Charles Xavier is forced to face the truth about his friend, Erik Lehnsherr. Cherik. One-shot. Please read and review. Enjoy.


Charles sat in a chair by the window. His head pressed up against the grimy glass. Probably wasn't good for him, but he didn't take notice. He was lost in his own thoughts. An easy enough thing for anybody to do, but for a telepath it was much more strong, sometimes even overwhelming.

For several weeks now both Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr had been up down the country searching for mutants they'd located using Hank's Cerebro machine. Earlier tonight they'd pulled into the Arrow Motel, a place on the outskirts of a small town along Route 66, facing the fact that they were never going to make the long drive to Santa Fe without an overnight stay. The Arrow Motel seemed well equipped with two stories of rooms, all with on-suite bathrooms. It also doubled up with a venue on the ground for hire and show nights.

Tonight was apparently some sort of Elvis night. The king's songs were loudly drifting out from the doors of the venue. Locals were milling around outside on the bonnets of the many cars, talking, smoking, laughing, drinking. The music occasionally came and pierced Charles' mind. Raven loved Elvis; she used to dance to his songs growing up. But that didn't touch his thoughts right now. He was thinking of someone else.

What was it about Erik Lehnsherr that meant Charles couldn't get him off his mind? Erik had a remarkable mind. But Charles had met remarkable before, and the time he'd spent thinking on their minds seemed fleeting compared to how often Charles thought of Erik. He couldn't understand why. Or perhaps the truth was that he did understand. But the professor didn't even want to think on the possibility alone of what the name for these thoughts might be.

It was a feeling Charles had never directly felt before himself, only in other people's minds. Sometimes it was strong in others and sometimes it was weak. His trust and care he felt for Raven was the closest thing he could describe to it, but even that was far from the truth. It was a strange mix of many feelings. His pride in Erik's gift, the fact that he was a mutant like himself. His joy in the idea that he might now have a friend other than his own sister. His fear of the unknown, of what he was feeling. And his lack of loneliness recently, the feeling that he didn't need to pick up girls at the bar for one night anymore. Then why did he feel so afraid, so tense, so hurt but something so good? Was it because he was afraid? Afraid of how unnatural these feelings were. Afraid to admit he loved another man? Love. There he'd said it. All these feelings amounted to love. But Erik wasn't just any other man.

"What are you doing?"

A familiar voice came from the other side of the room and jolted Charles back to reality. The mind-reader turned his head sharply to see the very man he'd been thinking of standing coolly in the doorway of his motel room. Charles wanted to sigh as he realised Erik was wearing that stupid turtle-neck that brought out his features so well. He looked positively delicious in it. Charles had the urge to rip to stupid thing off his body right that moment. He was certainly glad he was the one that could read minds, not Erik. But as always he kept a calm face on.

"Listening." He replied quietly and flicking a finger at the window in a lame excuse to cover up his true reason.

Erik stepped further into the room, shutting the behind him, and turned his head to wall joining the room next to Charles and smirked. "Well good luck getting to sleep tonight." He said sarcastically.

Now that Charles had been snapped back to reality he was much more in touch with his senses again. The paper thin walls of the motel didn't do much for privacy. The woman staying in the room next to Charles seemed to have met a man she liked and the two of them were 'jumping on the bed' together. Though of course Charles knew better.

"Yes, between Elvis, the happy couple next door and you're snoring across the hall from me I don't know how I'm going to cope."

"Hey, I don't snore!" Erik retorted.

"Would you like a drink?" Charles asked, ignoring his friend with his back turned as he pulled a bottle of brandy out of his suitcase.

"Where did you get that?" Erik questioned, his attention now fully turned to the bottle.

"I bought it." Charles answered simply as he poured out two drinks. "And I borrowed the glasses from downstairs."

"Really Charles, you're getting to be almost as sneaky as I am, I'm impressed."

"Two can play this game, Erik." Charles said with a small smile on his lips as he handed the drink over to his friend.

The two of them chinked their glasses together and then sat down to drink at the edge of Charles' bed, seeing as there was only one chair in the room.

"Raven loves Elvis." The telepath said absent-mindedly. "She used to put his records on and dance when our parents weren't in the house."

"Did you dance?" Erik asked. He took a sip of his drink as he continued staring at the wall in front of them, decorated with pealing bright red wallpaper and a large copy of some Picasso painting.

Charles turned his head and stared at his friend. Going for a mock-expression which showed he thought Erik was crazy. But his face softened when Erik turned his own head to stare back at him and he didn't quite pull it off. Why did Erik always look so gorgeous?

"No." The mind-reader replied curtly and looked away, taking a sip of his drink. "Only when Raven made me." He added in a mumble.

"I bet she did." Erik cheered, satisfied with the image in his head.

"I wasn't all that bad, I'll have you know." Charles retorted, giving him an annoyed glance.

"I'll hold you to that and you and Raven prove it someday."

"Please don't, Raven will kill me just for telling you."

'Jailhouse Rock' finished playing outside the window and a new song began. Charles recognised it; 'Always on My Mind.' How ironic, when his own mind was constantly filled with his feelings for Erik, but those words he could never tell either.

"Charles, are you alright?"

Erik's voice jerked him back once again and he suddenly realised he'd been lost in his own thoughts once more.

"Raven never danced to this one, she said it was too slow. But it's always been one of my favourites." Charles muttered, trying to change the conversation.

"Charles." Erik repeated, this time more sternly.

The telepath knew his friend was having none of it. He forced himself to look at the older man.

"I don't need the ability to read minds to tell when something is wrong with you." Erik continued to press. "You're so blatantly obvious Charles. What is it you're not telling me?"

The mind-reader let out a hefty sigh. Debating whether or not he should tell Erik the truth. On the spare and pure will of the moment he decided to just go for it. Better to die trying than not to try at all. But how did he explain his feelings to Erik without risking him lose it in the process.

"It's not the sort of thing I can explain that easily." Charles slowly answered, his eyes staring into Erik's stormy coloured ones for any change of emotion.

Erik chuckled. "Then show me." He told his friend, taking the telepath's hands and pressing two fingers to his temple, ready to read the other's mind. As Erik gripped Charles hand his fingers lingered unusually long on his skin, caressing the fingers only slightly before slipping away. But even that small touch made the professor shiver, how he longed for something more, something much less brief. Suddenly Charles knew what he must do.

"Alright." He agreed and nodded once. "I'll show you, but not like this. Close your eyes."

Erik's gaze stayed watching him curiously for a little longer than the professor was comfortable with but eventually he obeyed.

The telepath slowly took his hand away from his head, instead gently grasping the face of the other man. He could feel Erik's skin tense under his touch, but he didn't react. Charles had the overwhelming urge to touch all of Erik's face, to seek out all of those features that he adored, but as always he remained in control. This was a vast step for him.

It seemed to Charles the time was moving abnormally slowly, as if he had the power to stop time itself, as he leaned in. Eventually, Charles' face was inches away from Erik's. Too late to turn back now, the telepath bestowed the most nervous and gentlest kiss of his life onto the other mutant's lips.

He pulled back all too quickly for his liking, his eyes flashing open and he dropped his hands away from his friend's face. Erik's lips had been so firm, so strong, just like the man himself. And it had only been for an instant, but Charles had loved that instant.

Although the telepath wanted to meet the other man's eyes, to see his expression and know his reaction, he just couldn't bring himself too. An uncomfortable silence fell between the two friends.

"So now you know." Charles stated finally, picking up his drink and hurrying over to the window. For the first time he couldn't stand to be so near to Erik, he thought facing the truth would at least bring him some form of peace, but his mind only felt all the more confused.

"How long?" Erik piercing voice questioned from the bed.

"What?" Charles asked, still staring out the window at the scene below him, too afraid to face the man he loved.

"How long have you felt this way?" Erik questioned again, his voice now came as a low and menacing growl.

Charles visibly shivered. Erik was now stood right behind him and his breath tickled the professor's neck as he spoke.

"I don't know." Charles admitted, and wheeled around to face his fears. Erik stood so close to him that the telepath lost all concentration for a moment and there was a pause before he could speak again. "Perhaps ever since we first met. I did save you, after all."

Erik smirked; it made Charles' heart melt. "Yes, you did." He replied.

The last chorus of 'Always on My Mind' was playing outside. Erik smoothly wrapped one hand around the telepath's arm, holding him in a firm grip. "Come on Charles, you're owed a dance to this song."

While locals danced at the actual event in the venue, up in Charles' motel room the two mutants danced to the muffled music, hand in hand with each other, Charles resting his head on Erik shoulder. It was very brief, but ultimately beautiful, just like their first kiss.

As the musical notes faded Charles lifted his head from his lover's shoulder and his electric blue eyes met the ocean ones of Erik. He stayed there, gazing on the features he so adored, unafraid now to look that him the way he wanted. But Erik could always be counted upon to have a few surprises. Without warning he bowed his head at lightning speed and passionately crushed Charles' lips to his own. It was a tense and hungry feeling, but it was more exciting, more liberating than anything Charles had ever felt in his life. As Erik moved his mouth against the younger mutants. Felt his jaw-line. Bit down upon his soft lips. Explored the telepath's mouth with his tongue. As Erik pushed him down onto the bed and he felt the strong weight of the other man over him, pinning him down, Charles felt a freedom burst from inside him. His fears. His suspicions. His pain. All of them were finally released from him.

* * *

"You do realise you just wasted $40 on an unused motel suite?" Charles muttered jokingly when Erik's eyes finally fluttered open.

The professor had awoken at first light but couldn't bear to disturb the other mutant that lay beside him in his bed. Instead he'd waited patiently and watched as the early morning sun crept up across the man's features which he so loved.

"I can't really call it wasted from where I'm looking at the picture." Erik hissed back as he gazed into the bright eyes of the man facing him.

Charles opened his mouth to retaliate but before he could another word out his mouth became use for something else as Erik slunk over to him and pressed his lips against the other mans once again.

They'd got through the night reasonably clothed. But to Charles this was more than a blessing than a neglect. So many times the telepath had woken up next to some women he'd only met the night before in a bar. It was meet, make love and then move on separately with each other's life. Charles felt that this was some sort of unspoken promise between the two men; that this was far more than any one night stand. Still the night had been far from a fail. They'd made the hinges creak as they rolled around on the motel bed together, lips only parting at the gasping need for air, bodies twisted into the feel of one another, caught up from everything else in their lives in the heat of the beautiful moment.

* * *

None of the people around The Arrow Motel could have known or would even have guessed that there was anything unordinary as two smartly dressed young men checked out of their separate rooms, got into a car together and drove away down route 66. At The Arrow Motel that event happened nearly every day. It wasn't the first time people left with a secret; that they were mutants, that they were lovers of the same gender. Even some people at the motel itself had those separate secrets. But none of the people there, not the tired and dishevelled looking woman who had occupied the suite next to Charles, nor the company men packing away the music and equipment from the event the night before, not even the smiling man with unusually silver coloured hair who checked the two men out of the motel could even have know that they had briefly witnessed and each played their small parts in the formation of the lifelong bond between Professor X and Magneto.


End file.
